Update from the Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists

Published on: Tuesday 6th April 2021

As Registrar, my role is to apply the legislation on registration of consultant lobbying activity robustly and fairly. The scope and ambit of registration was defined by parliament in 2014 and remains a matter for government and parliament.

Some recent comment has suggested that a number of groups of people, such as lawyers, management consultants or politicians, are not bound by the current law and that only businesses defining themselves as ‘consultant lobbyists’ are subject to the rules. This is inaccurate and misleading.

Whether an activity needs to be registered as consultant lobbying depends on the nature of the activity, not on the sector or whether the individual or company considers themselves to be a lobbyist. Consultant lobbying is defined in the Act as communicating with ministers and some other senior officials on behalf of a paying client.

Harry Rich
April 2021

Notes for editors
1. The Office of the Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists was set up following the Transparency of Lobbying, Non-Party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014, in order to create and administer the statutory Register of Consultant Lobbyists.
2. The Registrar is an independent office holder, responsible for keeping and publishing the Register of Consultant Lobbyists.
3. Further guidance on compliance with the Act is available on the Office of the Registrar of Consultant Lobbyist website